Download Chapter 3

Chapter 3
Culture
Wednesday
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Bell Work
Grab Books
 Grab Folders
 Grab Notes Outline from Back:
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Answer in Folders (Task #1)
Read opening box (pg.60)
 WHAT IS CULTURE? WHAT DOES IT
MEAN TO YOU? (leave room to answer
again later)
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What is Culture?
Refers to the beliefs, values, behavior
and material objects that, together, form
a people’s way of life
 Two basic components
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Non-Material Culture
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Intangible creations of human society (ideas)
Material Culture
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Tangible products of human society (things)
What is Culture
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Cultures Role
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Culture Shock
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Two components describe a peoples way of life
Also plays a role in shaping human personality
Occurs when an individual suffers personal
disorientation when experiencing an unfamiliar way
of life
Task #2
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Read Thinking Globally pg.63: Answer
What is Culture
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Only humans depend on culture to ensure
survival
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What do all other animals (except some primates)
depend on?
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Culture is very recent and took a long time to
develop as a strategy
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Natural Instincts
Human achievement set us on evolutionary course,
making culture the primary survival strategy
Concept of culture is different
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To concepts of nations (political entities) and
societies (organized interaction of people)
Elements of Culture
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All cultures have five common components:
symbols, language, values/beliefs, norms, and
material culture
 Symbols
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Anything that carries a particular meaning
recognized by people who share culture
Meanings can vary form society to society, w/in a
single society, and over time.
Read Symbols (pgs. 64-66)
Symbols
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How does this
represent a symbol
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Peace?
Lesson Closing
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Task #3
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In your folders
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L-J#1
What is culture now? What does it mean to
you?
Cover Movie Project Outline
Bell Work: Get books and Folders
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Task #4: Read/Answer
What are the 5 elements of a culture?
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What are the 2 basic components of Culture?
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Material and non-material culture
What occurs when a person suffers personal
disorientation when experiencing an unfamiliar
way of life?
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Symbols, language, values/beliefs, norms, and
material culture
Culture Shock
Read/Answer Applying Soc in Folders (Task #5)
Elements of Culture
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Language
System of symbols that allows people to
communicate w/one another
 Key to Cultural transmission
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Sapir-Whorf Thesis:
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Process by which one generation passes culture
to the next.
People perceive world through cultural lens of
language.
Look @ Global Map of languages
Values and Beliefs
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Values
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Culturally defined standards by which
people judge desirability, goodness and
beauty, and serve as broad guidelines for
social living.
Beliefs (supported by values)
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Specific statements that people hold to be
true.
Task #6
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Read Robin Williams Key values of culture
Write them down in your folder.
 Then reflect on at least 3 that you either identify
the most with, or strongly disagree with.
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Lesson Closing
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Video on Cultural Norms
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Power Media Plus
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Social Interaction in Everyday life
Bell Work
Get Books/Folders/Paper in back
 Task #7
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Read/Answer Essay on page 41 of HO
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Morals in the U.S
Values and Beliefs
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Values in Conflict
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Values w/in a society are often inconsistent and
can even oppose one another
Task #8 “Don’t Blame Me” Outloud
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Americans may be becoming increasingly unwilling to
accept personal responsibility for their failings and
misfortunes
Values Globally differ somewhat from high to
low income countries in general. (3-2 pg.72)
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Low= often values of survival
High= often values of individualism/self-expression
Norms
Rules and expectations by which a
society guides the behavior of its
members
 2 Types described by William Sumner
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Mores: widely observed/morally significant
norms
 Folkways: Norms for routine/casual
interaction.
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Norms
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Social Control (Reward/punishment)
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Various means by which members of
society encourage conformity to norms
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Could be a weird look, nod of approval or
greater than either
Task #9
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Complete Your Turn in folders on pg. 72
But think of it in terms of our high-school
 And the social control factor that could play into
it.
 Have at least an example to share for one or the
other
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Thursday Bell Work
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Bell Work: Get books/folders
Culturally Defined standard that serve as broad guidelines?
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Specific Statements that people hold to be true
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People usually react likes they’re gross, and immature!
How does the person then feel?
What is social Control
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Mores
What is an example of social control when a person burps or farts in
a restaurant?
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Beliefs
Norm that is widely observed; often moral….
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Values
Rewards/punishment a society uses to encourage conformity to norms
L-J #2
Material Culture
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Material Culture reflects a society’s
values and a society’s Technology
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Technology
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Knowledge that people apply to the task of living
in their surroundings
What are some examples of how we’ve
used technology to adapt to our
surroundings?
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Irrigation, harvesting techniques, cars,
computers
Distinguishing
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1.
Sociologists Distinguish between ideal
and real culture
Ideal Culture
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2.
Social patterns that are mandated by
cultural values and norms
Real Culture
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Actual social patterns that only
approximate cultural expectations
Cultural Diversity: Many ways
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Who is the most multicultural of all the
industrial countries?
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U.S.
Cultural Diversity can even include social
classes.
 People often judge others activities in
regards to two main patterns
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High Culture
 Popular Culture
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Cultural Diversity
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High Culture
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Cultural patterns that distinguish a society’s elite
Examples of judgments?
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Popular Culture
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Cultural patterns that are widespread among a
society’s population
Examples of judgments?
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Opera, “Theatre,” Ballet, etc.
Hip-hop, rock, sporting events
High culture is not superior to popular culture
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Often people just have different interests/tastes
Which culture would play a violin….fiddle?
Subcultures
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Cultural patterns that distinguish some segment of
a society’s population
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Involve both differences and hierarchy
People too often view “mainstream” culture what really
is those patterns favored by the powerful segments of
the population
They also view the lives of disadvantaged people as
“subculture”
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Task #10: Your Turn pg. 75
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Are hunting, skeet shooting, and ATV driving any less
cultural patterns than Aspen skiing, playing polo, and going
to the opera?
That is what has led sociologists to Multiculturalism
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Lesson Closing
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Task #11
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Complete in the times on pgs. 76-77
Get with a partner
Each have to look at the others five
subcultures and have to place partner in
one they didn’t list.
 Create list and turn in at end of period for
each partner
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDvLk7e2Irc
Friday Bell Work
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Bell Work: Get Books/folders
Answer these questions as Task #12
Cultural patterns that distinguish some segment of a
society’s population?
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Cultural patterns that distinguish a society’s elite
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Popular Culture
T/F High culture is often superior to Popular culture
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High Culture
Cultural patterns that are widespread among a
society’s population
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Subculture
False
Video
Multiculturalism
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Educational program recognizing the cultural
diversity of the U.S. & promoting equality of all
cultural traditions
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Euro centrism: Dominance of European cultural
patterns
Supporters argue that it helps us come to
terms w/a diverse population and use that as a
strength
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Often argue for Afro-centrism:
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Dominance of African cultural patterns
Multiculturalism
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Opponents
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Argue that it
encourages
divisiveness over unity
People begin to
evaluate ideas based
on race/gender
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Leading to judgments
like “African experience”
and “Asian experience”
Cultural Diversity
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Counter Culture
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Cultural patterns that strongly oppose widely
accepted ones in a society
Cultural Change
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Promoted by three things: Invention, discovery, and
diffusion.
Cultural integration: close relationship among
various elements of a cultural system.
Cultural Lag: cultural elements (material/non)
change at different rates, causing disruption
Ethnocentrism and Cultural
Relativism
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Ethnocentrism
The practice of judging another culture by
the standards of one’s own culture
 Look @ pg. 81 Figure
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Cultural Relativism
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Practice of judging a culture by its own
standards
Lesson Closing
L-J #3 : Dice Game
 Video
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The Way We Live: Common Ground:
Culture
Read from book for Monday
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Ethnocentrism and Cultural Relativism
Monday Bell Work
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Bell Work
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Answer Questions
Dominance of European cultural trends
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Cultural lag
Counter-Culture?
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Multiculturalism
Material things moving faster than nonmaterial things
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Multiculturalism
Education program promoting equality of all cultural traditions
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Afro-centrism
Stands in direct opposition of Euro-centrism
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Euro-centrism
Dominance of African cultural trends
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Grab book/folder
Cultural patterns opposite of widely accepted one’s.
Finish: The Way We Live: Common Ground: Culture
Emergence of a global culture
Read A Global Culture? Pgs. 81-82
 Much evidence exists that suggests the
emergence of a global culture
 3 Key Factors that are promoting it
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Global Economy: The flow of goods
 Global Communications: Flow of information
 Global Migration: Flow of people
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Emergence of a Global Culture
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Three Limitations
Global culture is more advanced in some
parts of the world than others
 Many people cannot afford to participate in
the material aspects of a global culture
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Satellite communication, air travel, etc.
Different people attribute different meanings
to various aspects of the global culture.
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Good and bad; different things learned from
similar elements.
Lesson Closing
L-J#4
 Video
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Way We live: The Sociological Perspective
Tues
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Bell Work
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Grab books/folders
Review: Task #13
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3 Factors that promote global culture?
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3 Limitations of a global culture?
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Ethnocentrism
Cultural patterns that strongly oppose widely accepted ones in a
society
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More advanced in some areas
Many can’t afford material parts
People attribute different meanings to it.
Practice of judging another culture by standards of own
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Global economy, communication, migration
Counter-culture
Practice of judging a culture by its own standards
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Cultural Relativism
Theoretical Analysis of Culture
Attempting to understand how culture
helps us make sense of ourselves and
the surrounding world
 Three Macro level approaches
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Structural Functional
 Social Conflict
 Sociobiology
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Structural Functional
Sees culture as a complex strategy for
meeting human needs
 Considers values the core of a culture
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Values direct our lives, give meaning to
what we do, and bring people together
Cultural Universals
Traits that are part of every known culture
 Ex: Family, funeral rites, joking
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Structural Functional
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Strengths
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Helps show how culture operates to meet
human needs
Weakness
Ignores cultural diversity
 Downplays importance of change
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Social Conflict
Idea that any cultural trait benefits some
members of a society at the expense of
others
 Rooted in Materialism
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Ties our cultural values of competitiveness
and material success to our country’s
economy
Social Conflict
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Strengths
Suggests that cultural systems do not
address human needs equally, allowing
some to dominate others
 This inequality pressures for change
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Weakness
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Understates the ways that cultural patterns
integrate members of a society
Lesson Closing
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L-J #5
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Finish:
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Way We live: The Sociological Perspective
Bell Work
Get books and folders
 Make sure you have your sociology
reading book
 Task #14: Copy down Chart on page 85
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Sociobiology
Theoretical approach that explores ways in
which human biology affects how we create
culture
 Claim that the large number of cultural
universals shows the fact that all humans are
members of a single biological species
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Based on Darwinism and the process of natural
selection
Sociobiology
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Critical Review
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Strengths
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Has generated intriguing theories about
biological roots of some cultural patterns
Weaknesses
May promote racism/sexism by claiming only
natural selection and other biological arguments
of old
 Research support is limited
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Read Thinking Globally
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Task #15
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10 Min.s
Culture and Human Freedoms
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Culture brings sociologists to one important
question
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To what extent are human beings, as cultural
creatures, free?
Two Views
Culture as constraint
 Culture as freedom
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Culture and Human Freedoms
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Two Views
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Constraint
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Humans cannot live w/out culture, but the need
for culture does have some drawbacks
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Culture is largely habits, meaning we will repeat
mistakes
Freedom
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Culture forces us to choose as we make and
remake a world for ourselves
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The more people understand the workings of culture
the better prepared we can be to use those freedoms
Lesson Closing
L-J #5
 Read book, make up any notes that
you’ve missed
 Read soc. Novel or work on project stuff
 Review Tomorrow: Complete any work
 Test Friday
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